Time for UK Government to ‘put money where its mouth is’ on Newport Tidal Lagoon

It’s time for the UK Government to stop stalling on tidal energy.

A major Indian corporation has now committed to a multi-million pound stake in Tidal Lagoon Power, the company behind proposed lagoon projects in Swansea Bay and Newport. The UK Government says that it is still considering the viability of the Tidal Lagoon project, and has not made an official comment on the most recent investment in the scheme by India’s Gupta Family.

We need to get behind renewal energy as a priority, and proposed lagoons for Swansea Bay and Newport could provide huge environmental and economic benefits for South Wales. Whilst it has been less discussed than the Swansea Bay project, I believe the rationale for a Newport lagoon is just as compelling.

Unfortunately the UK Government has continued to delay making a decision on tidal lagoons, which has wasted vital time and sapped momentum away from schemes which have support from both the environmental and business communities.

David Cameron and his Welsh Secretary Stephen Crabb once paraded the idea of a tidal lagoon for Swansea Bay in particular. Now the Prime Minister vaguely confesses that his enthusiasm in the idea has waned. This indecision is simply not good enough, and the time for hesitating is over. It’s time for the UK Government to put its money where its mouth is and make a decision on tidal lagoons for south Wales.